Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to adhesive-backed communication cabling duct cabling for in-building wireless or fiber to the home horizontal cabling applications. In particular, the elongation properties of the exemplary duct are controlled by introducing an array of defined discontinuities along the length of the cabling duct.
Background
More than half of all mobile communications originate from inside buildings. With the development of 3G and 4G smart phones and other data intensive mobile devices, increasing demand is being placed on wireless and wired infrastructure within buildings such as office buildings, schools, hospitals, and residential units. Better wired and wireless communication coverage is needed to provide the desired bandwidth to an increasing number of customers. However, the labor to install these enhanced wired and wireless systems in existing buildings can be costly, so a low cost and easy to install structured cabling solution to enhance wired and/or wireless coverage within a building is needed.
Conventional wired communications systems include enterprise grade Passive Optical Networks (PONs) and Ethernet over twisted pairs or optical fibers. Wired cabling can also be used for remote powering of optical fiber fed wireless access points and remote radios for the in building wireless system. Telecommunication carriers are extending higher capacity wired and wireless coverage inside buildings. There are a number of known network architectures for distributing communication signals inside of a building. These architectures include choices of passive, active and hybrid systems. Active architectures generally include manipulated transmission signals carried over fiber optic cables to remote electronic devices which reconstitute the electrical signal and transmit/receive the signal. Passive architectures include components to radiate and receive signals. Hybrid architectures can include an optical or RF signal carried optically to active signal distribution points which convert the signal into another form which is transmitted to an appropriate receiving device.
Physical and aesthetic challenges exist in providing high bandwidth cabling for different communication network architectures, especially in older buildings and structures. These challenges include gaining building access, limited distribution space in riser closets, and space for cable routing and management. Conventional methods for routing of cables in these communication networks can include direct application of cabling to a wall or ceiling surface which can be aesthetically unpleasing, placement of the cabling within rigid duct work or behind decorative moldings which can be expensive and labor intensive to install, and placement of the cabling within elastomeric ductwork. Elastomeric ductwork can be pre-populated with transmission media including power lines or communication lines such as optical fibers and metallic communication lines (i.e. twisted pair copper wires, micro coaxial cable, etc). Using elastomeric duct work can be advantageous because it is provided in long continuous lengths on transportation spools. However, the spooling of the duct on the transportation spool can lead to an extra amount (i.e. length) of transmission media being pulled into a loosely filled duct. When the duct is removed from the reel and installed on a wall, excess media in the duct may have nowhere to travel; thus the media can bend and/or buckle inside the duct. The bending and buckling of the transmission media inside the duct can damage the media and/or degrade the signal performance being transmitted through the media. Ducts with inadequate elongation properties can be susceptible to this type of problem, if the media and strength member are not in the same bending plane or neutral axis. Thus, there is a need for a continuous elastomeric duct having controlled elongation properties.